First Government in the World to Mandate Regulations for Microplastics in Drinking Water: Ecotoxicologist Scott Coffin Explains
Finding Genius Podcast
Richard Jacobs
4.4 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 7 December 2022
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
California is not only the first U.S. state but the first government in the world to mandate the development of regulations for microplastics in drinking water.
What is getting into California's drinking water?
This will be the first line of investigation as soon as this mandate is implemented. Once we know what we're being exposed to, we'll have a much better idea of the problem we face, the health effects we may be experiencing, and ways to tackle the issue.
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Tune in to learn:
- The best predictor for whether microplastics are causing inflammation and cytotoxicity in the human body
- What size of plastic particles are removed by the large majority of drinking water treatment plants
- Why tap water, even with the presence of microplastics, might be a better option than bottled water or refilling 5-gallon containers with reverse osmosis water
- Tools and techniques for monitoring and analyzing drinking water for microplastics
Scott Coffin has been studying the effects of microplastic pollution on aquatic organisms and humans since 2014. He is a research scientist at the California State Water Resources Control Board, part of the California EPA. He shares loads of important information about water -- the substance that makes up over half our body weight.
Press play and visit Drinking Water Programs | California State Water Resources Control Board to learn more.
Episode also available on Apple Podcast: http://apple.co/30PvU9C
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Instead of thinking about microplastics as sort of these discrete categories of different |
| 0:05.6 | shape sizes and and and polymers, I like to think of them more as a continuous distribution. |
| 0:11.5 | And in that way, we consider what's really going on physiologically with these particles |
| 0:18.4 | and what makes us concerned about their impacts. And when it comes to human health, |
| 0:23.6 | we have pretty good evidence that the surface area of the particles is really what's most concerning. |
| 0:31.2 | That is a good predictor for whether or not it's causing inflammation or oxidative stress. |
| 0:37.3 | Forget frequently asked questions. How about advice from a real genius? 95% of people in any |
| 0:45.6 | profession are good enough to be qualified in license. 5%, they become very good at what they do, |
| 0:51.7 | but only 0.1% are real geniuses. Richard Jacobs has made it his life's mission to find them |
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| 1:03.9 | ketogenic diets, and more. Here come the geniuses. This is the Finding Genius Podcast. |
| 1:14.8 | So this is Richard Jacobs with the Finding Genius Podcast, now part of the Finding Genius |
| 1:18.7 | Foundation. I have Scott Kloffen, PhD. He's a research scientist, part of the California State |
| 1:24.3 | Water Resource Science 6 Monitoring and Drinking Water. And Scott, thank you for coming. |
| 1:29.3 | Happy to be here. Tell me a bit about your background if you would. And then I want to ask you |
| 1:32.8 | about your work with the State of California. Sure. So I am a trained ecotoxicologist, |
| 1:38.8 | and I've been studying microplastic pollution and their effects on aquatic organisms and humans |
| 1:44.8 | since 2014. I did my PhD at an environmental toxicology from the University of California at Riverside. |
| 1:52.4 | And now I work for the California State Water Resources Control Board. This is part of the |
| 1:57.9 | California Environmental Protection Agency, and is the main agency that regulates water |
| 2:04.8 | in state of California. California currently has a mandate to develop regulations for microplastics |
| 2:11.6 | and drinking water, as well as implement monitoring and policy for microplastics in their marine |
... |
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